The old geopolitical order is dead. There is no putting toothpaste back in the tube. You don’t have to like it (and you may love it), but you can’t deny it. The question becomes what is the path forward, and what can and should we do about it?

Iran, the EU, Nato, Ukraine, China, tariffs, war, Greenland, Venezuela, Canada as the 51st state. Lots to talk about and lots to disagree on. Where is the US going? Will the EU move towards China? Are globalists right to bemoan the current state of affairs, or are they simply denying the inevitability of multipolarity, even if Trump wasn’t the one to do it?

We’re bring two foreign policy afficianados (including a former member of the Albanian parliament!) to discuss. Moderated by a student of Yale’s renowned Master in Public Policy, and experienced Young Voices moderator, Hekmat Aboukhater.

Upcoming UNMUTED Events
Tuesday, 3/31: An UNMUTED x the Bench Dialogue: Break Up Big Tech? (link)

Wednesday, 4/15: An UNMUTED Dialogue: Is the West Still the West? (link)

Thursday, 4/23: An UNMUTED Dialogue: Free Speech is Dead, Long Live Free Speech (link)

Check out all our events here

The events I’ve got my eye on in the next two weeks. Check them out!

🗓 Monday, March 30
•6:00 PM – Re-Thinking Theater and Politics in a Time of Multiple Crises
Subject: Politics and the Arts
Where: The New School - 66 West 12th Street, New York, NY 10011, Auditorium A407
Who: 1014
What: A conversation with titans of the arts in NYC and abroad to discuss the intersections of political crisis and the arts, most specifically theatre. My intern is a fan of Artistic movements as political resistance, and such, I think conversations like this are worth advertising.

•6:30 PM – The Story of Capital
Subject: Economics and literature
Where: The People’s Forum
Who: The People’s Forum
What: A book talk and conversation with author David Harvey on his book “The Story of Capital” which is an approachable guide to Marxist theory. Ok, listen here, people, Marx is not political. We are seeing the capitalist system pushed to the margins, not advocating for Marx, but we must be having economic conversations along side poltical ones.

🗓 Tuesday, March 31
•4:00 PM – The Ukraine Effect
Subject: Global politics and War
Where: New York University Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia, 19 University Place, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10003
Who: New York University Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia
What: Not technically past work hours, but this event might be worth it. This conversation is a critical analysis of how countries are perceived after engaging in armed conflict. While this particular analysis will discuss Russia, Ukraine, and their neighbors, its insights may transcend their borders and be applicable to the noticeable loss of Soft Power for the United States since the United States' engagement in conflict with Iran.

•8:00 PM – Senator Cory Booker in conversation with Gayle King on Stand
Subject: Politics
Where: Available upon registration
Who: The Streicker Center
What: A book talk and conversation with Senator Cory Booker on his new book Stand, which is an amplification of his famous filibuster against the Trump Administration. Cool, current, always interesting hearing the bullshit straight from the horse’s mouth.

Wednesday, April 1
•6:00 PM – Montaigne’s Skepticism
Subject: Philosophy
Where: The Morningside Institute, 91 Claremont Avenue, Floor 11New York, NY, 10027
Who: The Morningside Institute
What: I had to have Gemini explain this to me like I was 5, but essentially, this discussion covers Pyrrhonian Skepticism, or the suspension of judgment to find tranquility. While wholly esoteric, there can be merit in classical philosophy, and also, in our case, in suspending judgment. Be ready to abandon your shoes if you go to this event, but it seems interesting.

•7:00 PM – What’s More American Than the Suburbs? A History of Levittown
Subject: Sociology
Where: Merrick Library, 2279 Merrick Avenue, Merrick, NY 11566 United
Who: Nassau Public Libraries
What: My Nassau peeps are getting some love. This talk covers the long history of American Suburbianism as it relates to the development of Long Island and NYC suburbs.

🗓 Thursday, April 2
•7:00 PM – Witt & Whiskey: An NYYRC Social
Subject: Social
Where: Location Revealed After Registration
Who: New York Young Republicans Club
What: A social hour with Republican influencer Will Witt talking politics, worldview, and entrepreneurship. We post a lot of NYYRC, and if you're a conservative looking for a fun night out, this is all you.

•7:00 PM – THE CO-OP BUILDERS: A Panel Discussion
Subject: History
Where: The People’s Forum
Who: The Peoples Forum
What: A historical discussion on the development heroes of New York's Past, Abraham Kazan and Herman Jessor. This discussion will celebrate the amazing history of New York low-income development and how modern-day has been shaped by its past and its key figures.

🗓 Friday, April 3
•10 AM - 7PM (Keynote at 5:00) – Techno-Fascism: Past and Present | An Interdisciplinary Symposium
Subject: Tech/ Policy/ Sociology
Where: Brown Institute for Media Innovation, 2950 Broadway, New York, NY 10027
Who: Columbia University
What: An all day symposium covering, you guessed it, techno-fascism. My intern was just ranting about how we all will be corporate slaves to Anthropic in 15 years, so this calendar of events is very apt. I won’t barge your head in about how important tech policy is now, but if your interested there are panels covering media, labor, and other topics throughout the day and a keynote panel in the evening. Worth checking out the lineup!

🗓 Saturday, April 4
•7:30 PM – 39 STEPS TOWARD FREEDOM
Subject: Theatrics/ History
Where: Harlem Community Center
Who: Shades of Truth Theater
What: A theatrical performance celebrating the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. The play will celebrate his impact on racial justice throughout the country. There is very little information on this, but amplifying the arts… right?

🗓 Sunday, April 5
Easter. There is also some other religious events this day including a seder for justice, but also keep an eye our for protests going on this day. There are several supposed to be taking place.

🗓 Monday, April 6
• 6:00 PM – Handwriting the Constitution
Subject: Civic Engagement and Art
Where: Old Stone House of Brooklyn
Who: Morgan O’Hara
What: If you loved the last time we featured this, it’s back. An interactive art workshop that encourages civic reflection through the physical act of handwriting important American documents. Whether you’re left, right, or somewhere in the middle, there’s something grounding about putting pen to paper on the words that started it all.

🗓 Tuesday, April 7
• 6:30 PM – After5Society: Star Wars & The Justice System: May the Courts Be With You
Subject: Law and Pop Culture
Where: Midtown, New York, NY
Who: After5Society
What: OK this one is just fun. A pop culture-meets-legal-theory event that uses Star Wars as a lens to examine the justice system. The Galactic Senate as metaphor for congressional dysfunction? I mean, it writes itself. If you’re a nerd and a policy person, this is your night. $29.99. I’d go to this with someone….978 302 5849

• 7:00 PM – Rogue Elephant: Book Launch
Subject: Political History
Where: The Verso Office, 207 E 32nd St, 4th Floor, New York, NY
Who: Verso Books
What: A book launch for Paul Heideman’s “Rogue Elephant: How Republicans Went from the Party of Business to the Party of Chaos.” He’ll be in conversation with historian Kim Phillips-Fein, journalist Doug Henwood, and scholar Anand Gopal. Now look, I know the title will make some of you roll your eyes, but understanding how the other side sees your party’s evolution is always worth the time. RSVP required, free to attend.

🗓 Wednesday, April 8
• 6:00 PM – Hegel 13/13 with Susan Buck-Morss
Subject: Philosophy and Political Theory
Where: Columbia Center for Contemporary Critical Thought, Columbia University
Who: Columbia University
What: We keep featuring this series because it keeps being relevant. Susan Buck-Morss is a heavyweight philosopher and intellectual historian, and this session connects Hegelian thought to modern political life. If you’ve been following along, you know the drill. If you haven’t — it’s free, it’s at Columbia, and you’ll feel smarter leaving than you did walking in.

• 6:00 PM – Reading Dante’s Inferno
Subject: Literature and Philosophy
Where: The Morningside Institute, 91 Claremont Avenue, Floor 11, New York, NY 10027
Who: The Morningside Institute
What: Renowned Dante scholar Professor Teodolinda Barolini leads a reading and dinner seminar on Dante’s Inferno. I know, I know — Dante doesn’t scream “political newsletter.” But if you can’t see the political allegory in a guy writing about descending through circles of hell while his country tears itself apart, I don’t know what to tell you. Plus, Morningside does the dinner seminar format, which is always a vibe.

🗓 Thursday, April 9
• 5:00 PM (Reception) / 6:00 PM (Panel) – The George Polk Awards Seminar: The Human Face of the Immigration Crackdown
Subject: Journalism and Immigration
Where: Kumble Theater at LIU Brooklyn
Who: Long Island University / George Polk Awards
What: This is the one this week. George Polk Award-winning journalists discuss their on-the-ground reporting on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and its human impact across the U.S. Moderated by Richard Tofel, former president of ProPublica, with panelists Stephanie Keith, Elliott Woods, and Camilo Montoya-Galvez. Free and open to the public. If you care about immigration policy — from any angle — hearing from the reporters who actually covered it is worth your Thursday evening.

• 6:00 PM – Apolitical Parties: Celebrating America’s 250th Without Partisan Fireworks
Subject: Civic Engagement
Where: 1 World Trade Center
Who: NY AAPOR
What: America turns 250 this year and this event explores how we can actually celebrate it without turning it into a partisan food fight. If you’re exhausted by everything being politicized, this might be the palate cleanser you need. At One World Trade, which is a pretty fitting venue. Free.

🗓 Friday, April 10
• 6:00 PM – HDC 2026 Preservation Conference: MAKING IT IN NEW YORK!
Subject: Urban History and Policy
Where: Various locations, NYC
Who: Historic Districts Council
What: A preservation conference focusing on the history and future of manufacturing in NYC. If you were into our panel about preservation vs. housing last month, this is a deeper dive into the same tensions — what do we keep, what do we build, and who decides? These questions are political whether they’re labeled that way or not.

🗓 Saturday, April 11
• 12:00 PM – Coffee with Conservatives: Bronx
Subject: Conservative Social
Where: Cafe of the Day, The Bronx
Who: Coffee with Conservatives
What: For my right-leaning readers in the outer boroughs, this one’s yours. A casual coffee meetup for conservatives in the Bronx to talk politics, policy, and life in a deep-blue city. $12.51 gets you in. It takes guts to be openly conservative in NYC, and events like this are exactly why we feature both sides.

🗓 Sunday, April 12
• 2:00 PM – Taking the High Road: Straight Talk with Suhag Shukla & Jenifer Rajkumar
Subject: Politics and Community
Where: Vista Penthouse Ballroom, Long Island City, Queens
Who: Hindu American Foundation
What: NY State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar and Hindu American Foundation Executive Director Suhag Shukla in conversation about politics, identity, and community advocacy. Queens gets some love this week. $50.

That’s it for this week. Let us know if there are events to highlight in upcoming weeks!

Show up, think deeper, and as always, stay UNMUTED!

The UNMUTED Team